Where a fishing lure has a non-movable exposed hook, the hook will often snag weeds or other objects as it moves through the water during trolling, which sometimes breaks the fishing line and causes loss of the lure, or alternatively results in a large piece of seaweed being snagged on and trailing behind the lure and thus rendering the lure unappealing to fish who might otherwise strike it.
Over the years, a number of lures have been developed which have a retractable hook. In particular, the hook is normally in a retracted position, but when a fish strikes the lure, the hook moves to an exposed position in which it can hook the fish and thus ensure the fish does not escape. When the hook is in the retracted position, the lure can pass through weeds and the like without snagging. An example of such a lure is Applicant's own prior U.S. Pat. No. 4,765,084.
Although the various pre-existing lures have been generally adequate for their intended purposes, they have not been satisfactory in all respects. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a lure of the type described above which is very simple in structure and inexpensive to manufacture, yet which operates very dependably.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a lure, as aforesaid, which is durable and rugged, and which will have a relatively long useful lifetime with little or no maintenance.